The Cecil Whig., 1887-04-30
MARK TWAIN'S TRIBUTE.
Matthew ArnoId's Attack on General
Grants English Fully Answered..

Matthew ArnoId's Attack on General
Grants English Fully Answered..
HARTFORD, CT, April 29.-At the an
nual reunion of the Army and Navy CLUB
of Connecticut this evening, the chief
address on the memory of General Grant
was made by the Rev. DR.. NJ B. Riddle,
formerly chaplain in the service. He
was followed by S. l.. Clemens MARK
Twain), who delivered characteristic
address. He said: Il will detain YOU
with only just d lew words-.just few
thousand words; and then give place to
a better man-it he has been created
Lately a great and houored author, Mat
thew Arnold. has been finding fault with
General Grants English. That would be
fair enough, may be, if the examples of
imperfect English averaged more in
stances to the pag, of General Grant S
book than they do i'll MIR. AInold'S cIiti-
cism upon the bouk-but they don't.
Laughter aud applause. 1t would be
taIr enough. may be, if such instances
were commoner in Gen. Grants book
than they are in the works of the aver
age standard author-but they aren't
In Mr. Arnold's paper on General Grants
book We lind couple OF grammatical
crimes, and more than several examples
of very crude and sovenly EugliSh The
following passage, all by itself, ought to
elect him: Meade suggested to Grant
that he might wish to have immediately
under him sherman, who mad been serv-
ing with Grant III the West He begged
hlm not to hesitate, if he thought II tor
the good OF the service. Grant assured
him that he had no thought of moving
HIM, and III his memoir, alter relating
what had passed, he adds, ,'-&c. To read
that passage couple of times would |
make IA man diZzN; to read it four times |
would make HIM drunk. [Great laugh
ter. MIR. Breen, cuuntryman of Ar |
nolu. made this discriminating remark :
To suppose that. because a man is "a poet |
or historian, he must be correct in his
grammar, is to suppose that an architect |
must be "a JOINER, OF a physician a com. |
FOUNDER OF medicine Mr. Breens point |
Is well taken. If you should climb the |
Mat. erhorn to look out over the kingdoms !
of the earth. i might be a pleasing incl
dent to find straw berries up there; but,
great scot, you don't climb the Matter
horn tor straw berries! Continued ap |
plduse.
There is that about the sun which
makes rs forget his spots; and when we
thirk of General Grant, our pulses
quicken and his grammar vanishes We
only remember That this is the simple.
soldier. who, all untaught of the sllkeu
phrase emakers, linked words together
with an art Oi slrpassing the art OF the
schools, and put into them something
which Will still bring to American ears
as long as America shall last, the roll OF
his vanished drums and the tread of his
marching hosts. Tumultuousa applause
w hat do we care for grammar when We
thlnk of the man that put together that
thunderuus phrase, L Unconditional and
surrender? And those others:
Il propose 20 move Immediately upou
your works, i propose to fight it out on
this line if it takes all summer Mr.
Arnold would doubles claim that that
last sentences is not strictly grammatical;
and yet, nevertheless, 1t did certainly
wake up thus nation as hundred million
tons, OF AL, fourth proof, bard bo led,
hide bound grammar from another mouth
couldn't have done. And finally we have
that gentler phrase-that one which
shows you another true side OF the man:
shows that iii his soldier heart there was
room for other than CORY war notices,
and i'll his tongue the gilt to titly phrase
them: Let us have peace. Pruluug-
ed applause and cheers.